Pussy Riot Musician Lost In Transit To New Gulag; Has Been Missing for 19 Days

Pussy Riot musician Nadezhda Tolokonnikova turned 24 yesterday, but her family and friends have no idea where she is.

Gulag authorities in Russia have been saying that the Pussy Riot protester was lost in transit while she was being moved from one prison to another. Nadya has been missing since October 22. That is when she was moved after writing a protest letter about prison life and going on hunger strike.

Russia's human rights authorities said the Pussy Riot musician was being transferred to a new colony in Siberia and was safe.

Nadiya's husband, Pyotr Verzilov, took to Twitter to say "The authorities of the colony in the taiga (region) told us that they don't have Tolokonnikova and don't know when she will arrive. 19 days without contact with Nadya, Snow, snow, snow, minus 20 degrees (Celsius) and camps where somewhere they are hiding Nadya."

Pussy Riot were jailed for the performance "Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer." They were convicted on August 17, 2012 of "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" for a performance in Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior. The called the performance "Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer."

Two members of Pussy Riot was sentenced to two years in prison. Pussy Riot is recognized as a political prisoner by the Union of Solidarity with Political Prisoners and Amnesty International.

Tolokonnikova went on hunger strike to protest prison conditions In September, . She was hospitalized. In the middle of October, the prison service said that she would be moved. The Pussy Riot musician wanted to raise awareness of poor prison conditions and "slave-like" work requirements at central Russian labor colony FGU IK-14 in Mordovia. The Pussy Riot musician reported that she got death threats from the colony administrator Lieutenant Colonel Yuri Kupriyanov.

Interfax reported that Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service said Tolokonnikova was being sent to a new penal colony. The family of the Pussy Riot singer will be informed within 10 days of her arrival, in accordance with state regulations. Prison officials have not made an official comment to the press.

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova's husband says the political punk rocker hasn't been heard from since October 21.

There are rumors that Tolokonnikova has been moved to a prison in Alatyr, which a small town in Chuvashia, about 100 miles east of Mordovia. It has been confirmed that the Pussy Riot protest singer was moved by train, but her destination is unknown. A passenger saw Nadia in transit in Chelyabinsk.

Nadia's Andrei Tolokonnikova said "No one knows anything. There's no proof she's alive, we don't know the state of her health. Is she sick? Has she been beaten?"

Petya Verzilov says this is the government getting revenge. He said "This is basically the only way they have to punish Nadya Let's cut her off from the outside world.'"

Maria Alyokhina, a Pussy Riot bandmate, recently withdrew her application for early release when she learned that Tolokonnikova hadn't been offered the same courtesy.

Both prisoners are scheduled for release in March of 2014.

Tolokonnikova was serving her sentence in the IK-14 women's penal colony in the Republic of Mordovia.